.

October 17, 2009

Black Dynamite: USE KUNG FU WHEN HE WANT, HAS SEX WHEN HE PLEASE

Last night I finally got to see Black Dynamite, which I had been eagerly awaiting for some time. It's a very small release, and unless you live in NYC, LA, Chicago, Philly, Seattle, or Atlanta you won't be able to see it. That said, if you do live in one of these towns and you like fun, you would be be seriously remiss in not seeing this movie.

As you might have gathered from the trailer, Black Dynamite is a blaxploitation spoof: if you're not familiar with that-- I guess you might not be, I guess this is supposed to be an otaku blog-- we're talking about a wave of B-movies that specifically targeted black audiences back in the 70s. You've probably heard the names Shaft, Foxy Brown, and Superfly before. These movies have a lasting camp appeal, and this isn't the first time somebody's homaged them. It is, however, probably the first time somebody's homaged them so thoroughly: this director should probably be awarded a degree in Blaxploitation Studies.

At the start it's kind of tough to even call Black Dynamite a spoof, because it's so dead on. Fake Rudy Ray Moore who speaks only in poorly-metered rhyme, check. Fake Pam Grier, check. Boom mic in the frame, you got it. Even when the movie breaks into song about exactly what is going on in this scene right now, it's not too far off from what the bottom-of-the-barrel blaxploitation movies were really like. In fact, terrible production values are less a running gag than a way of life for this movie: weird cuts, people standing in places they shouldn't be, and awkward silences after bad line readings are all common. This is no slick studio production: it's going for that Dolemite, that Fred Williamson vibe.

And yes, it works. We had a pretty small crowd in attendance (small movie, limited run, limited advertising, people don't know this movie exists), but the movie managed to keep all of us laughing for nearly its entire running time. There isn't a line in this script that isn't funny: when the guys and I got out of the theater, all we could talk about for an hour were all the awesome things people said in this movie. Check out the soundboard for some examples, but be warned that this, and even the amazing trailer, only give away a tiny bit of how awesome Black Dynamite actually turned out to be. I'm deliberately withholding information from that is too awesome not to find out in the theater. Don't look up plot details: go see the movie instead.

So not only were my expectations met, they were actually exceeded. Considering my expectations were high enough from the trailer, this is really something! If you're in a city this movie is playing in, I'm telling you, it will not disappoint. Get out there and see this movie on the big screen while you can, before it inevitably becomes a cult hit on DVD and cable.